The Dam* Dam!

No trip out west is complete without visiting one of the wonders of the world!  And we made sure to include a stop at the Hoover Dam on our way to Vegas.  Fortunately, we did a little research beforehand and learned they were not doing any dam tours because of unforeseen elevator maintenance.   No worries, we would still be able to go through the Visitor Center, learn the history and then walk around outside to see what this dam thing was all about.

The drive from Flagstaff to the Hoover Dam was 'scenic'.  We got to see all the rocks, tumbleweeds, cacti and dust devils we wanted!  And it was along this drive that we talked about how much we enjoy being close to the water.

(Be sure to click on the pictures to enlarge.)

Seriously, like driving through a quarry.

As we got closer, the terrain changed a bit and you could see the plateaus surrounding Lake Mead.

The Colorado River in the lower middle of the picture.

View of Lake Mead as we entered the Hoover Dam area.

Power grid

The 'new' bridge.

The crane on the right of the picture was original when the dam was built and is still used today to get materials/parts down to the bottom.

The wall of the dam.

From the Visitor Center, a replica of the cement bucket that would be lowered and emptied as they built the dam.

Replica of the generators.

View down to the bottom of the dam.

View from the top of the dam, looking down the Colorado river.

Monument at Hoover Dam

The 'back' wall of the dam.

Intake tunnels

View of Lake Mead after leaving the dam.

Although we didn't get to go into the dam or take an official dam tour, we did go through the exhibits in the Visitor Center, watched a short video on the history of the construction of the dam and were entertained with a live presentation by one of the guides.  To think, back in the 30's when the idea was conceived to create a dam, bid the job, divert the river (so they could work on the dam), generate electricity, have the foresight to develop a system and structure that would be in place and operate for a very long time, without the aid of computers, technology and many of the 'industrial-strength' machines we have today!  And they finished it two years ahead of schedule!  Kind of hard to wrap your head around.

Here is a great documentary from the PBS series American Experience on the building of the Hoover Dam.

Can you name that skyline?

After an informative (and warm) experience at the dam, we made our way to Vegas where we will be for a few days.  Perhaps we can make a few bucks at the tables to cover the next leg of our adventure.  :o)

(Apologies for some of the pictures being less than clear.  I am known to roll down the window and snap a few pictures while we are driving.  And yes, there are a few bug splats on the windshield, but there also seems to be something in the lens of the camera creating a dark shadow in some of the pictures.  A ghost perhaps?  We are in the wild west after all.  :o)  )